Justice Varma cash scandal: All eyes on CJI Khanna as three-member panel submits inquiry report

All eyes will now be on Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna days before his retirement as a three-member judicial committee submitted its report to him following an in-house inquiry into allegations against Justice Yashwant Varma, a sitting judge accused of storing a large amount of cash at his official residence, and whether he would make the report public or not.

CJI Khanna will demit his office on May 13, 2025.

The CJI will review the committee’s report, which assesses whether there is substance to the allegations of unaccounted cash found at Justice Varma’s residence and, if so, whether the misconduct warrants further action. The report addresses three key questions: how Justice Varma accounts for the money, its source, and who removed it.

The CJI may consult senior Supreme Court judges or the Supreme Court Collegium to determine a course of action.

In a step towards transparency, the Supreme Court had made public the reports, documents, photos, and videos related to the fire incident, including evidence of burning cash, by uploading them on its official platform. Now all eyes will be on CJI Khanna to see whether he will make the contents of the report public or not.

The committee, comprising Justice Sheel Nagu (Chief Justice, Punjab and Haryana High Court), Justice G.S. Sandhawalia (Chief Justice, Himachal Pradesh High Court), and Justice Anu Sivaraman (Judge, Karnataka High Court), finalised its findings on May 3, 2025. The contents of the report remain confidential.

The inquiry was initiated by CJI Khanna on March 22, 2025, after reports surfaced about a significant cash stash discovered in a store-room at the outhouse of Justice Varma’s official residence during a firefighting operation.

At the time, Justice Varma had been serving as a judge of the Delhi High Court. Following the controversy, he was transferred to the Allahabad High Court (his parent court).

The decision for a formal probe was based on a preliminary report by Delhi High Court Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyay, who recommended a thorough investigation.

In response to the allegations, Justice Varma denied storing any cash, stating that the store-room was unlocked, accessible to staff, and that he was not in Delhi during the fire incident.

He further claimed that no cash was seized and described the accusations as a conspiracy to frame him.

India